Tag Archives: Nicelle Davis

Woke up Saturday morning ready to give H a ride to the airport so he could wing his way to Mexico– only to find out that Dallas is mostly shut down due to ice. I always have issues when trying to fly through Texas and this bodes poorly for my leg of the journey next week when I fly out to meet him. Still, we’ve discovered a few things. Waiting on hold is no longer necessary– the airline will call you back when your turn in line comes up. This meant a couple more hours of sleep– and also resulted in the second discovery– H gets absolutely no cell service in my apartment. Cue a cozy Greta and a chilly H, trying to re-book his flights– me shivering out to the car to bring coffee and sit for a while before scurrying back inside to scan over poetry and stress out about what I’ll be reading on Tuesday. (He’ll leave later tonight– fingers crossed that my part of the trip is a little smoother.)

It’s always strange when you find yourself caught in a place after you had planned to leave. I know it’s happened to me a few times– I’m never sure if I should deal with Real Life things that might not have been tended to, or I should act like I’m already gone, considering I should have been. I always end up feeling like a ghost-person, not entirely present where I am yet not yet where I’m headed– days of not-quite-anywhere-solid. It’s a frustrating place to be, and I’m glad at least that we found out about the cancelled flight before getting to SeaTac, and that his flight was cancelled before he got to DFW to sit stranded with the thousand other travelers, watching ice glint and searching for outlets and places to sit.

Throughout the day H’s stuff slowly spread around my apartment– it was supposed to be unpacked under a Mexican sun and yet here he was, under the bright cold Seattle sky, digging through for running clothing so we could shiver around Green Lake. I think he was the first to say Hotel Alexis and it seems a good name for my home right now. Tomorrow I’ll pick up Nicelle and we’ll read together at the Hugo House. The next day it’s planes for us and out of town, but E. will be coming in from Denver and staying at my place while I’m gone. I come back, he leaves to cat-sit for another friend, and a few days later B comes back to stay for an indeterminate time. Then AWP hits town and I have already told my friends that I will help find couch/bed/floor space for everyone. I am throwing my secret lair open and inviting people into my bubble. I have the spare sheets folded, a stack of clean towels, a stash of extra toothbrushes and enough needle and thread to fix everyone’s torn things. Welcome to the Hotel Alexis, I hope everyone enjoys their stay!

Take a look at Nicelle’s latest publication through Gold Wake Press. I did the cover design for her, and she has another project brewing that I’m about to start on. Nicelle, you are amazing. (Click on the title of the chapbook to open the pdf. I won’t tell you how long it took me to figure that out.)